Toasted Muesli

As the mornings get colder (and often wetter) firing up the oven and making your own muesli is the perfect way to toil away a wet weekend morning. This version is refined sugar free and is loaded with delicious clusters of crunchy oats as well as being loaded with nuts and seeds. 
Feel free to adapt it as you like. Here I've used a mixture of quick cooking oats (for the clusters) and larger wholegrain oats, but if you want a richer clusterful muesli, omit the larger oats at the end. 
Also feel free to adapt the combinations of nuts and seeds which are added. I love walnuts, so went with that this time, but cashews, macadamia, almond or pecan would also be delicious and no doubt I'll be mixing it up with my next batch. If you're a dried fruit fan, you can add that at the end once it has finished cooking. 

Ingredients (makes 10 cups of muesli; 20-30 serves):  

• 3/4 cup dried pitted dates
• 2 tsp vanilla essence 
• 1 tbsp cinnamon 
• 3/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1/4 cup water extra
• 3 cups of quick cooking oats
• 1 cup coconut
• 3 cups of traditional wholegrain oats - I used Harraways 
• 1 cup nuts - walnuts, almond, cashew, macadamia, pecan or a mixture
• 1 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• 1 cup chopped dried fruit of your choice - sultanas, apricot, cranberries etc (optional) 

Put dates, vanilla, cinnamon, and 3/4 cup of water into a small saucepan. Simmer on a low heat for 5 minutes stirring frequently. We want the dates to begin to dissolve in the water, and the water to reduce so the result is a date paste. 

Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius, and place 3 cups of quick cook oats and coconut into a large roasting dish. 

Add 1/4 cup of oil, and another 1/4 cup of water to the date mixture. Mix well to combine, then stir through the oats. It should be a sticky mess at this stage. Excellent. 

Spread evenly across the roasting dish and break up any large clusters. 

Roast for 40 minutes, turning every 10 minutes. You want the oats to dry out. 

Now add the remaining wholegrain oats, nuts and seeds. Continue cooking for another 10 - 20 minutes turning once. 

Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. If using dried fruit add it once cooled. Finally, store your muesli in an airtight container for up to a month. 

Serve with your choice of fruits, yogurt and milk.    

Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Icing

Carrot cake is my favourite cake, I think it's because of the bits, the texture, the little surprise bites of walnut that you get. Most people will tell you that it's the cream cheese icing (if that's you - be sure to double the icing quantity), but for me, it's the walnuts. 
I've adapted this recipe over the years to have more carrots, and less sugar, though it still has 1 cup of brown sugar, it's considerably less than what it was before! 
It's also so fast and easy to put together, and throw into the oven. 


Ingredients (Serves 8 - 12):

• 2 cups flour 
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tbsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 cup of packed brown sugar
• 3 cups of grated carrot 
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1/2 cup chopped dates 
• 1 cup of vegetable oil 
• 3 eggs lightly beaten 

Cream Cheese Icing** - double this icing quantity, if filling the middle of the cake also. 

• 250 grams of cream cheese 
• 1 cup of icing sugar
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• pumpkin seeds, toasted coconut, chopped nuts or dried fruit to decorate

Preheat the oven to 180•C and prepare a 22cm round baking tin. I grease with oil, and line the base with baking paper. 

Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and ginger into a large bowl. 

Stir through the grated carrot, walnuts and dates, till well combined. 

Gently beat the eggs, and add to the dry ingredients along with the cup of oil. Mix well. 

Pour the batter into the baking tin and use a spatula to make sure it is spread evenly. 

Bake for 50 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. Cool in tin for 10 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely. 

To make the icing, beat the cream cheese to soften and sift in the icing sugar. Add the lemon juice and continue beating until smooth. Spread over the cooled cake. 

Decorate with nuts, seeds, coconut or dried fruit. If not eating all at once, store in the fridge. 

** Optional If you want to make the cake even more spectacular, double the icing recipe and cut the cake through the middle horizontally. Fill the middle of the cake with 1/3 of the icing. 

Pasta with Bacon Brussels Sprouts and Leek

We love pasta in this house. It's so versatile (in flavour variations and shape) and usually super fast to whip up and wolf down. This creation takes a few classic flavour combinations and combines it into a healthy, yet hearty and downright delicious flavour explosion. Even if you 'don't like brussels sprouts', I dare you to try this, then tell me that. 

Ingredients (Serves 4): 

• 50 grams walnuts 
• 400 grams dried pasta, rigatoni, penne or spiral would all work well
• 6-8 rashers of rindless free range bacon, diced
• 2 tbsp olive oil, plus extra to drizzle
• 1 leek, sliced in half lengthways, then finely sliced (white and light green parts only)
• 30 grams butter
• 400 grams brussels sprouts, washed, trimmed and cut in half
• 1 tsp chilli flakes
• black pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup shaved parmesan 

Heat frying pan, and dry fry the walnuts for a few minutes, stirring, till lightly toasted. Set Aside. 

Boil pasta in a large pot of well salted water according to packet directions. 

Meanwhile, heat oil in the pan you toasted the walnuts in, add diced bacon and cook stirring for 3 - 5 minutes. Add leek, and continue cooking for another 2-3 minutes. I added about a cup of water during this cooking process, bit by bit, to allow the bits on the bottom of the pan to lift off and flavour the dish, rather than burn. 

Once softened, add the butter, brussels sprouts and chilli flakes to the pan. Cook, stirring for another 6- 10 minutes till the sprouts are softened and bright green in colour. By now, the pasta should also be cooked. I added about 1/4-1/2 a cup of the pasta water to the pan, to lift off any further bits from the bottom. 

Divide pasta into four bowls, top with bacon and sprouts mix, drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and garnish with shaved parmesan and toasted walnuts. 

Afghans with chocolate fudge icing

Afghans are a classic taste of kiwi baking. They're a crunchy, crumbly, cornflakey cookie, covered in chocolate icing and topped with a walnut. If you're not a walnut fan, you can leave it off or substitute it for a little coconut.  The difference between these afghans and other recipes is that I use a boiled icing. Boiled icing is made similar to how you would cook custard, with milk, icing sugar, cocoa and a little butter. 

Ingredients (makes 36 small biscuits or 16 large):

• 200 grams butter, softened
• 1/3 cup of packed brown sugar
• 1 1/4 cups of plain flour
• 1/4 cup of cocoa
• 1 1/2 cups of crushed cornflakes

Chocolate Fudge Icing

• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1 1/4 cups of icing sugar
• 20 grams butter
• 1 cup of milk 
• 1 tsp vanilla essence
• 70 grams of walnut pieces

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celsius. Line two baking trays with baking paper.

To make the biscuits, cream the butter and sugar till light and fluffy. 

Gently stir in sifted cocoa and flour. Once well combined stir in the crushed cornflakes. 

Use wet hands to roll small balls, arrange on the baking trays and press lightly with a wet fork. 

Bake for 12 minutes; or 18 minutes if making large biscuits. When cooked, cool on a wire rack. 

Once cooled make the icing. Sift the icing sugar and cocoa into a small saucepan. Pour in 1/4 of the milk and whisk to combine. Make sure their are no dry lumps, then pour in the rest of the milk and butter. 

Put the saucepan on a medium heat and bring the boil, stirring occasionally. Boil rapidly for 1 - 2 minutes till thickened a little. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla essence. 

Leave to cool for a couple of minutes, you'll notice it thicken more and more as it cools. While still warm spread spoonfuls of icing on top of each cookie. Place a walnut half or a couple of pieces on the top of each cookie. 

Enjoy.

Top: Chocolate Berry Truffles and Spicy Oaty Cranberry White Chocolate Cookies
Bottom: Ginger Crunch and Afghans with Chocolate Fudge Icing

Walnut Chocolate Brownies

The new year is often a time for resolutions and healthy feel good goals, which are usually too extreme to maintain, like no junk food - yeah right. As far as I'm concerned there is no good or bad food. Sure some things we should eat more of than others, but restricting something is only going to make you want it more!! 

I don't think I know anyone who doesn't like chocolate brownies  - except maybe me. However for some reason I had a craving, and the only way to satisfy a craving is to have the thing which one craves, these brownies are rich and chocolates, the addition of walnuts adds a delightful crunchy texture and the subtle aroma of olive oil cuts through the sweetness. Making these chewy chocolates morsels quite devine. They're also rediculously easy to prepare.

Ingredients (makes 12 - 16):

• 220 grams dark chocolate
• 170 grams walnut pieces
• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 3 eggs
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla essence 
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1/2 tsp baking powder 

Method

Grease a 20cm square baking dish and line with baking paper. Preheat oven to 170 degrees Celsius. 

Over a double boiler, gently melt the chocolate. Set aside to cool slightly. 

Use an electric beater to beat eggs with sugar and oil. Slowly poor in the melted chocolate while still beating. Doing this slowly makes sure that you don't scramble the eggs in the residual heat of the chocolate. 

Next sift the dry ingredients, flour, cocoa, and baking powder over the chocolate mix. Use a large metal spoon to gently fold together till combined. Finally fold in the walnuts. 

Spread into the prepared baking dish and bake for 35 minutes. The top will start to crack a little. 

Cool in the tin, before removing and gently peeling off the baking paper. Cut and serve with cream or ice cream.